Thankful

Life with 5 children isn't easy.  Life with three preschool aged children isn't easy.  Life as a foster parent isn't easy.  It has become so easy to focus on all that isn't easy..  When we got home from church yesterday all I wanted to do was collapse.  The sad thing was that we had just talked about being content with the place the Lord has us in right now.  Although I had determined between myself and God to get to that content place I was not sure how to move from grumbling to peaceful.

I was wondering how I could be content when I knew all that needed doing and I had only a little nap time to do it in.  The house was a mess, and I was tired and my family was having one of those strained Sundays.  You know, the ones where you go to church with your mask on because you don't want anyone knowing where you are really at today?  Yep, it was one of those days and I had only nap time to pull myself together and all I wanted to do was sleep.

First, I determined that I wasn't going to focus on the fact that things weren't easy.  Duh!  I walked this path willingly.  No, I begged for this path.  I felt called to this path.  I did not know what to do so I just stood up.  Sometimes that is a good first step for me when I am overwhelmed.  Next, I started picking things up.  With everything I picked up I made myself think of a reason to say thank you.

It went something like this....

"Lord, thank you for the little feet that wear these shoes.  Thank you for the friends that gave us this coat.  Thank you for the money to enjoy things like pizza.  Thank you for these blocks that I have watched all my babies play with.  Thank you for friends who provided these clothes for Tyke and Tot.  Thank you for the baby in my home that needs these blankets.  Thank you for these dishes to wash because it means we eat well..."

I am not exaggerating it went on and on (my house was a big ol' mess!).  I was shocked that there wasn't a single thing that I touched that did not somehow deserve a grateful heart on my part.  I spend far too much time thinking about the hard things when I am literally surrounded by blessings.

That hour of thank-yous changed my attitude on Sunday  Even though my "day of rest" had work that needed to be done I felt more rested than if I had slept for an hour. “A joyful heart is good medicine, But a broken spirit dries up the bones” (Proverbs 17:22).